Sole and method of sole fitting



' Nov. 12, 1935. 5 c. E. HOOD SOLE AND METHOD OF SOLE FITTING OriginaIFiled Oct. 14, 1951 a H F //vv/vmR W E (53 an;

Patented Nov. 12, 1935 2,020,411 SOLE AND METHOD or sou; FITTING Charles E. Hood, Lynn, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Original application October 14, 1931, Serial No. 568,787. Divided and this application March 8, 1934, Serial No. 714,673

5 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in soles and methods of sole fitting and is herein illustrated with reference to the preparation of the margins of outer soles for the performance of shank reducing operations upon the soles.

In fitting outer soles for shoes preparatory to the attachment of the soles to the shoes, it is often desired to reduce the thickness of the edges of the soles at their shank portions by beveling the margins of thesoles at the flesh side, i. e., at the side of the sole which is to be adjacent to the upper of the shoe. This is commonly spoken of as shank reducing.

One object of the present invention is to insure that the reduced areas shall terminate with accuracy and uniformity at or in the immediate vicinity of the break line of the sole so that the reduced edge shall not extend into the forepart of the finished shoe but shall lie close to the upper in the vicinity of the break or bend between the shank and the forepart. The term break line is herein used to denote an imaginary line on the tread surface of the sole which, after the sole has been subjected to the usual molding operation, is visibly indicated by the more or less abrupt junction of the unmolded forepart with the molded shank. V

To the accomplishment of this object the invention, in one aspect, provides an improved method of fitting soles which consists in forming, in the margin of a sole at the break line, a shoulder extending inwardly from the sole edge, and thereafter reducing the edge thickness of the sole rearwardly of said shoulder to provide a reduced marginal area the forward extremity of which is defined by said shoulder. This operation may conveniently be performed upon both lateral margins of the sole by the machine disclosed and claimed in my application for United States Letters Patentserial No. 568,787, filed 00- tober 14, 1931, of which this application is a division. The sole is then molded to form a bend between the forepart and the shank. The abovementioned shoulder is inclined to the face of the sole in a direction lengthwise of the sole to an extent determined by the abruptness of the angle orbend to be formed between the shank and the forepart of the sole by the molding operation so that, as a result of the molding, the shoulder will be displaced substantially into the plane of the molded shank portion with the unmolded forepart 5 a of the sole. 7

Regarded in another aspect, the invention resides also in a sole prepared for the performance of a shank reducing operation thereon by having formed in its margin, a shoulder extending inwardly from the sole edge, in the vicinity of the break line, to determine the forward extent of a shank reducing operation subsequently to be performed. As shown herein, the shoulder is formed as one side of a notch the bottom of which is inclined transversely with respect to the sole edge to form a shank-reducing cut adapted to merge with the surface to be formed by the reducing operation.

The invention will be explained with reference 20 to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 'l is a plan view of a sole as it appears after the formation of the notches;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of the sole shown in Fig. 1 illustrating 25' particularly the shape of one of the notches;

Fig. 3 is. an edge view of the portion of the sole shown in' Fig. 2 illustrating the subsequent step of reducing the sole edge; and

Fig. 4 is a View showing the sole edge as it appears after the shank portion has been reduced and molded and showing also cooperating sole molds in operative relation to the sole.

As shown in the drawing, a sole is first provided in its flesh side with two marginal notches, such as the notches A, A, shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Each of the illustrated notches A, A is defined by three angularly disposed surfaces, viz., a substantially rectangular bottom surface C and two triangular lateral surfaces or shoulders D and. E. the bottom surfaces C slope upwardly from the edge of the sole at an angle corresponding approximately to the angle of bevel of surfaces produced by shank reducing cuts (indicated by dotted lines at G) which are subsequently to be made in the sole by a separate sole fitting operation. The two triangular shoulders D and E which define the sides of each notch diverge upwardly from the respective bottom surface 0 and, as herein shown, the upper edges of the shoulder D are directly above the break line B of the sole. When the shank reducing cuts G are made, each of the shoulders E will be obliterated and the beveled surfaces formed by the shank reducing cuts will merge with the sloping surfaces C formed by the notches. The shoulders D, however, will remain at the completion of the shank reducing operations and will constitute the forward extremities of the reduced areas. The formation and arrangement of the shoulders D is such that when the shank portion of the sole is subsequently molded, as shown in Fig. 4, the surfaces constituting the shoulders D will be brought substantially into the plane of the face of the unmolded forepart of the sole, as indicated at M.

After the notches A, A have been formed in the sole, the sole margins are reduced rearwardly 0f the notches by a suitable sole edge reducing knife or cutter such, for example, as a knife of the type shown at J in Fig. 3, which is adapted to make a draw out. Such knives are commonly used in edge reducing machines. The notches provide clearance for the knife J, permitting it to be properly positioned to start the shank reducing cuts. The knife J is inclined at an angle corresponding to the angle of inclination of the bottom surfaces C of the notches A, A so that the beveled surfaces formed by the knife will blend with the surfaces C and thus be extended forwardly to the shoulders D. After being shank reduced, as above described, the sole is molded, for example, between upper and lower molds K and L (Fig. 4) to impart the desired contour to the shank portion of the sole and the desired angle or bend between the shank and the forepart. The shank portion of the illustrated sole is bent abruptly with respect to the sole forepart at such an angle that the shoulders D are offset substantially into the plane of the upper or attaching surface of the unmolded forepart of the sole, as indicated at M in Fig. 4. This portion M of the sole margin, being located just rearwardly of the break line between the shank and forepart of the sole, will form in effect a rearward extension of the attaching surface of the forepart which will lie close to the upper. As

a result, the break between the unmolded forepart and the molded shank portion of the sole, as seen upon the attaching surface of the sole at the margins thereof, will be caused to coincide with the forward extremities of the beveled portions of the shank, and the thin edges produced by the shank reducing cuts will not extend forwardly into the forepart of the sole, but the sole edges, at the forward extremities of the reduced areas, will assume the desired close relation to the upper of the shoe, without buckling, at the junction of the molded shank portion with the unmolded forepart of the sole.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. That improvement in methods of sole fitting which consists in forming in the margin of a 5 sole a notch extending inwardly from the sole edge and defined by surfaces comprising a bottom surface adapted to constitute the forward portion of a reduced area in the sole margin and a lateral surface at the break line of the sole 10 adapted to define the forward termination of said reduced area, and thereafter reducing the margin of the sole rearwardly of said notch.

2. That improvement in methods of sole fitting which consists in forming a shoulder extending 15 inwardly from the sole edge to define the forward termination of an area subsequently to be reduced at the sole margin, said shoulder being inclined lengthwise of the sole to an extent determined by the abruptness of the angle to be formed 20 between the shank and forepart of the sole by a subsequent sole molding operation, reducing the edge thickness of the sole margin rearwardly of said shoulder, and thereafter molding the sole to offset said shoulder substantially into the plane 25 of the surface of the unmolded forepart of the sole.

3. A sole prepared for the performance of a shank reducing operation thereon by having formed in its margin a shoulder extending in- 50 wardly from the sole edge at the break line of the sole for determining the forward extent of the shank reducing operation subsequently to [be performed at the shank portion of the sole, said shoulder sloping upwardly from a locality rear- 35 ward of the break line and having its forward and upper edge directly over the break line.

4. A sole prepared for the performance of a shank reducing operation thereon by having formed in each lateral sole margin a notch de- 4,0 fined by a bottom surface and two lateral surfaces, one of said lateral surfaces being located at the break line and the bottom surface being located at the forward end of the shank portion of the sole, said bottom surface being inclined 45 thereby to merge with a surface to be formed by the shank reducing operation and one of said lateral surfaces being adapted to define the forward extent of the shank reducing operation.

5. A sole prepared for a shank reducing opera- 50 tion thereon by having formed in the sole margin a shoulder extending inwardly from the sole edge and sloping heightwise and lengthwise of the sole relatively to the surface of the sole to an extent determined by the abruptness of the bend 5!} between the shank and forepart of the sole to be imparted to the sole by a subsequent sole molding operation.

CHARLES E. HOOD. 

